figure 9

The Figure 9 contemporary figurative painters exhibit on display in the Art Gallery at the State University in Oneonta consisted of works by nine contemporary artists. The paintings and drawings ranged from full-body nudes to portraits. The work was presented as a contemporary gallery and the works complimented each other on the walls despite the difference in technique, composition and design.
One artist that I found particularly interesting and compelling was Susan Moore. Her large scale paintings have incredible surface texture, with layer upon layer built from the canvas. The two pieces in the exhibit were made with oil stick and featured the female figure. The same woman may have been used in both pieces, one depicting a torso shot and the other a close portrait. Her style and color palette reflects the earth, soft browns and deep reds, yellow ochre and forest green. All the colors combined to create depth and intensity on the canvas. The piece featured below I found especially powerful. The figure is slightly deformed, yet radiates pure beauty. Moore captures the essence of the woman in her painting.

I think that figurative work becomes so power because it is so personal, we each have bodies and imperfections. That simple truth connects us as people and as individuals. The artists’ understanding and skill of rendering human anatomy is one aspect of their art, but the other is capturing emotion and personality. The artist’s of this exhibit have successfully accomplished this task.

Another artist, Costa Vavagiakis so meticulously rendered the face that the paint literally becomes irrelevant. The luminous, almost paper thin flesh is so frail and translucent that blue veins can be seen from the surface. Small details like beauty marks and freckles are included and all aspects of the person are perfectly transferred to the canvas. He truly has not only mastered anatomy, but has pushed paint to create realistic qualities.

While the exhibit was beautiful, there was little interpretation, even titles were absent. I did enjoy the display of the paintings and it was nice to focus entirely on the art and detail of each work without other text. However, as I was entirely fascinated with Susan Moore’s work, I would have liked a little more insight into her process and personal connection to her work. Having an artist’s perspective on their work adds another depth to an exhibit and this exhibition was lacking that depth.